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New Jersey Devils Final Defense And Goalie Grades For 2020-21 Season

By Nick Villano

P.K. Subban #76 of the New Jersey Devils is congratulated by teammates Pavel Zacha #37,Ty Smith #24,Jesper Bratt #63 and Jack Hughes #86 after Subban scored in the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at Prudential Center on February 20, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey.The Buffalo Sabres defeated the New Jersey Devils 3-2. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
P.K. Subban #76 of the New Jersey Devils is congratulated by teammates Pavel Zacha #37,Ty Smith #24,Jesper Bratt #63 and Jack Hughes #86 after Subban scored in the third period against the Buffalo Sabres at Prudential Center on February 20, 2021 in Newark, New Jersey.The Buffalo Sabres defeated the New Jersey Devils 3-2. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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New Jersey Devils goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood (29): (Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports) /

Mackenzie Blackwood

How is it possible to look absolutely elite one night and completely lost the next? That was the season for Mackenzie Blackwood. His aggregate stats look terrible because of the few stinkers he had throughout the season. Only seven goalies in the entire NHL had worse goals saved above average stats than Blackwood. He was even worse when teams were getting high-danger chances against him. Blackwood had times this season where he would “make the save nobody expected” like this save-of-the-year candidate against the Boston Bruins, but there were too many times he looked average in net. It likely has a lot to do with the COVID-19 diagnosis early in the season, so this could just be a throwaway season for him, but he has a lot to prove in 2021-22.

Grade: C

Scott Wedgewood

Scott Wedgewood is the Devils candidate for the Masterton Trophy for good reason. He came to the Devils as an extra behind Blackwood and Corey Crawford, but he was rushed into the backup role when Crawford decided his NHL career was over. Wedgewood hadn’t started an NHL game in three seasons before this year. So, for him to start 15 games and play well in most of them was great. While he only had three wins, two of them came via the shutout. He gave the Devils a chance to win. Don’t be surprised if the Devils try to bring him back as a third option next season.

Grade: B+

Next. Devils Forward Grades For 2020-21 Season. dark

Aaron Dell

Aaron Dell only played seven games for the Devils this season after he was claimed off of waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs. It was a very strange season for him, but even taking that into account he wasn’t what the Devils needed. The Devils decided to keep Dell over Eric Comrie. Maybe that was still the right decision so Dell could provide a veteran presence of some kind, but his on-ice stats were not good. 4.14 GAA and an .857 save percentage won’t get anyone excited about what you did. Still, it was a strange situation so we’ll keep him from getting one of the worst grades.

Grade: C-

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